BRENDAN RODGERS yesterday admitted that Celtic are well below the level his side set in his first year at the club, in the remarkable ‘Invincible’ season.
“I don’t think we’re anywhere near the level of our game,” Brendan said yesterday.
“We haven’t been as dynamic as we have been in the last couple of years. It might be a season for us like that.”
Celtic go to Rugby Park tomorrow and could kick-off 8 points behind Hearts who are at home to third placed Livingston. And with Rangers at home to St Johnstone tomorrow, Celtic will need to score their first away league goal of the campaign or risk falling behind them too.
Yesterday on The Celtic Star we outlined the argument for playing two strikers against Kilmarnock – Stats NOT Entertainment – read HERE.
Rodgers’ side looked like drawing another game on Wednesday before substitute Leigh Griffiths popped up with a late winner after Scott Brown abandoned the pass pass pass stuff to aim along ball towards the centre half Boyata who had stayed up.
“The win was probably down to spirit and persistence,” the Celtic manager noted at yesterday’s media conference ahead of the Kilmarnock game. “I said last week at St Mirren, even with ten men, we were dominant.
“But it’s just that final third. It’s a mixture of confidence and not being dynamic enough at times. So that is allowing us not to be decisive enough in games.
“We are not conceding. That’s five games when we have not lost a goal. So you just have to be persistent and trust right to the very end that the goal will come.
“The goal on Thursday night was a demonstration of that. Good ball by Scott Brown, great leap by Dedryck Boyata and Griff does what he does, reads the ball, goes in and finishes.
“Being able to win and not give away much is important because that helps your confidence and you grow and grow from there.
“Right now it’s a bit of everything for us. We lost dynamic players. We have had lots of games. We just have to continue to work hard on the training field and win games when we are not at our best.
“The squad’s very honest, a brilliant bunch of boys to work with. We will always find a way and try to find a solution to perform well because performing, for me, is very, very important.
“We’re just missing something in the final third of the pitch. You see balls where they just need a bit of subtlety and a bit of softness for a pull-back. We’re rifling it across, and you have no chance to finish.
“It’s just time. You can’t score perfect goals all the time.”
Celtic NEED goals tomorrow, or we are in danger of opening up a real battle for the league on several fronts.
Two up top please Brendan!
